True Pacifist
by AncienneLuna
Summary: Frisk is left all alone after their actions led to the destruction of their world. No longer able to reset, they are left with little hope of redemption. However, when given one more chance at their happiness, how are they going to avoid making the same mistakes while searching for a way to achieve that better ending?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

 **(Hey hey hey! What, surprised I've started yet another fic! Don't be! That's just how I roll honestly. My mind flits around through brief moments of obsession and inspiration. Currently, Undertale has stolen my heart just like everyone else, and for good reason! The characters are so wonderful and really connect to me!**

* * *

Dark. Darker, yet dark.

Nothing matters now. Nothing exists.

They try to move their body, but without air to move against them, they are unable to tell what position they are in. There is no ground to stand on, no sky to look up to, no walls to shield them.

No light, but then again, they aren't sure there's anything left to illuminate.

They aren't quite sure how long it's been since everything went black. It seems time, too, is no longer a concept they can rely on now; numerous attempts at reloading their save file hadn't seemed to make a difference in the environment.

Now, with nothing but their own thoughts to keep them company, Frisk is afraid. Truly, completely afraid. For so long they had been the one in control, able to reset and reload at will. They never really put much thought into the consequences of all their time-hopping, and why would they? Theoretically, even the consequences could be undone with a true reset, bringing everything back to the moment she first entered the Underground. Nothing was permanent, and they could get away with anything they wanted.

Not that they really wanted to do anything bad in the first place. Things just kind of... escalated at some point. Their mind gradually shifted from mercy to violence; Frisk to Chara. They still had no clue how that idea made it into their head - when did they start thinking they were really Chara? Was it subconscious, or was someone trying to manipulate them all along? Flowey believed it too, the poor thing. He really thought his best friend had returned, that they were going to destroy everything together.

Everyone treated them as if they weren't really human, which was something that had stuck in their mind some time after the world ended.

 _"It would really make my brother happy... if you kept pretending to be one."_

What made him think they weren't human? Was their behavior really so strange that their humanity was unrecognizable?

Chara themself was the only one that made their distinction clear in the end. It seemed impossible then that they could have been the same person... it _should_ be impossible. Yet those bloody thoughts that flitted through their head... Asriel's smile on Flowey's little face as he recognized his long-dead companion... these memories filled them with doubt and uncertainty, anxiety threatening to bubble to the surface.

They hated the anxiety most, especially in this setting. All they wanted was to run away, find somewhere safe, some _one_ safe, but there was nowhere to go anymore. No one to comfort them anymore. They would scream and cry into the darkness, clinging to some remaining thread of hope inside that someone made it out alive with them, someone was out there looking for them, and at any moment they would emerge from the shadows before them, eyes shining brightly as they fell upon the lost child they had been searching for.

 _But nobody came._

Those words would echo back at them, mocking and cruel. Voices rang out around them, laughing, taunting, singing in the lonely human's sorrow. This was what they deserved, Frisk supposed. This was all just karma finally catching up to them, now that it had the time to catch up.

Still, it was hard to hold everything in sometimes. The silence, though they were more used to it now, was all-encompassing, an unsettling ring constantly sounding in their head to make sense of it all. Anxiety only made tone louder, so terribly loud. It scared them even more, how this awful, blaring noise was still all just in their head - that in reality, there was no sound at all, and nothing to fear, and their mind still felt the need to make up imaginary threats.

There was only one way to break the stillness in this void. The single spot of life left among a sea of death; Frisk was the only color left, the only source of energy. If nobody else was here to create noise, they would just have to do so themselves.

Taking in a deep breath, they closed their eyes and screamed at the top of their little lungs - shouting, cursing, crying, letting out their frustrations without restraint. A child's weeping voice filled the nothingness, and the shadows seemed to ripple and sway as if moved by the very power of that shrill cry. They screamed and screamed till their chubby face was bright red and tingling from lack of air (was there even oxygen left to breathe anymore?), unrelenting until the final traces of anger had been drained from their system. A wave of silence once more washed over them, peace reasserting itself as the sudden outburst subsided. Everything was calm once more -

"yeesh, could you try to give a warning before you go shrieking like that next time?"

\- _But somebody came._

Startled, Frisk managed to spin their small body around to face the direction the voice had originated. This was new... perhaps another trick Chara set in place to mess with them. The other child didn't seem to appreciate the fact that Frisk remained here, but where else could they possibly go? To their surprise - and horror - however, it was not the image of the eerily-smiling spirit they were met with, but the grin of an all-too-familiar monster.

"though i have to say kid, this is the first time i've heard you make so much noise. those are some powerful chords you got there," he continued, casually shifting his weight to one side as he chuckled at the human in front of him. Frisk could only stare in disbelief as their old friend appeared seemingly out of thin air, still unsure if this was real or just a hallucination. Maybe they had finally lost it, floating here in the void for so long. The monster noticed their expression, and his smile shifted slightly, now more coy than before. "what? aren't you happy to see me, pal? i went through so much trouble to find you, what with our entire plane of existence being wiped out," he continued, gesturing to the vast expanses of emptiness that surrounded them on all sides. Frisk could only muster the strength to move their eyes, looking down from that cheeky face to take in his appearance. He took the hint rather quickly. "oops, sorry about that. i didn't exactly have the opportunity to clean myself up after our fight earlier, but i figured you wouldn't really mind. i mean, _you're_ the one that did this to me, after all."

It hit them like a brick wall. Realization dawned on their face, and confusion turned to pure panic as the memories came back. Sans stood there, hands stuffed in the pockets of his signature blue hoodie, laughing to himself once more as he saw the human's emotions change so quickly. It really must have been longer than they thought; the memories of the different timelines they traversed had become jumbled and disorganized over time, events becoming blurry and distorted as everything merged together. Now, however, everything was back in its rightful place, each timeline clearly defined in chronological order.

They had killed Sans. Slashed him across the torso as he fell asleep during his "special attack". He was dead and gone and couldn't possibly be here in this nothingness anyways, and yet _here he was_ , blood still dripping from that fatal wound as he gripped the tattered scarf around his neck. His shirt was stained deep crimson, and little spots dotted his fuzzy pink slippers. Perhaps this really _was_ hell, and the dead were coming back to torment them for their sins in times past.

They had killed everyone. Toriel, Papyrus, Undyne, Mettaton, Sans, Asgore, Flowey... everyone that had the misfortune of crossing their path. That was why Chara came back from death; all the carnage had caught their attention, and they approached Frisk at the end of their journey. That was when... that was when Chara finally gained control. That was when the world came to a sudden, painful end. That was when Frisk was left to suffer all alone.

"you really are some kinda freak, huh? then again, seems most humans are. give em a little taste of power, and they suddenly think themselves gods. they abuse their abilities, push them to the limits, and inevitably mess with something they shouldn't, and then wonder why things didn't turn out like they planned. they only regret what they've done when they're left with nothing, expecting mercy when they gave none themselves. i'm kinda glad we never made it to the surface in this last loop - i'm not so sure i'd like to live among humans if they're all like you and that demon kid," the skeleton spoke up after a few moments of silence, no longer pretending to be friendly. His voice was deep, bitter, biting; Frisk hadn't heard the voice of another being in so long, and the hate-filled words managed to hit them deep within their soul, made all the more powerful in the silence.

"i do still feel a bit for ya, even after everything you've done. you're still just a kid, and what is a kid expected to do when given this enormous power that they couldn't possibly comprehend?" he shrugged, shaking his head softly as he did so. "but we gave you so many chances. we practically walked hand-in-hand with you to the very end, and you still weren't satisfied. why settle for a peaceful ending when you could go back and try for another? there'd be no harm in that, right?" at this, he lowered his head, eyes closing as he addressed Frisk. "but now look what you've done. you tried to have it all and now you've got nothing," he muttered, once again looking up at the child with empty eyes.

 **"hurts, doesn't it?"**

Flowey's sad smile flashed through their mind, in a situation not so unlike this one. The deja vu was nauseating, even after experiencing the sensation so many times already. Poor, sweet Asriel...

They didn't care about this anymore. They just wanted things to go back to how they were before. Nodding their head in response, Frisk could feel tears slowly drip from their eyes and slide down their cheek, leaving shimmering trails on their skin. As if not expecting this type of response, Sans' white pupils returned once more, steely gaze faltering. He paused once more, seemingly thinking up a response to the human's admittance. The fingers wrapped tightly around the scarf twitched, and now Papyrus was the one that came to mind. Even in his final moments, he refused to give up on them. He thought they could still be a good person. Could he see the fight with his brother in the afterlife? Did he watch his brother die? After everything they've done since his death, would Papyrus have lost faith in them by now? Where did Sans disappear to after Papyrus' defeat anyways? Thinking back on it now, he never once mentioned the other skeleton until the very end of his life. He wouldn't let the human see him mourn, even in his final moments. Frisk couldn't begin to imagine how hard that must've been.

They didn't notice, but Sans was staring at them now; he'd likely noticed them deep in thought and chose to wait for them to come out of it. Now that their eyes met, his smile faltered for the first time since they'd crossed paths in the forest so long ago. "heh. i was like you once, you know? i had this knowledge that nobody else had, that i could play around with however i wanted. suddenly, it felt like the natural rules of our world just... didn't apply to me somehow, like i was above everyone else. of course, it's only a matter of time, huh? karma's a real bitch." he broke eye contact, looking down at the heart-shaped locket still dangling around Frisk's skinny neck. "we like to think we're above that kinda stuff at this point, or we can somehow bend it to act how we want it to. it's almost like there's somethin out there watching us, letting us dig ourselves deeper and deeper, until we get to the point where we realize it's all pointless, but by then it's too late. the trap snaps shut, and there's no way out."

He seemed so... sad. So sad that it was making Frisk terribly uncomfortable. They weren't used to so much change happening out of their control. Sans was supposed to be the calm and collected one, the one that just went with the flow and adapted to the situation. He was the rational voice among a sea of uncertainty. Here, now, he was different. Vulnerable. A new wave of pain rippled through their soul as they realized it was their fault he was brought so low. They were the one that broke him. "i knew someone like that other kid, too- the creepy one. they, uh, had a few screws loose, if you know what i mean. i don't think they were trying to be bad but, well... they were. really bad. really powerful, too. that's not a good combo, in my experience." the lingering hand at his neck was slowly brought back down to rest in his pocket. "anyways, they came across the whole 'time loop' thing, what with the save points and all. they were gonna try and use that power to help out us monsters, maybe find a way to bypass the barrier completely through some kinda portal. but all that knowledge really messed 'em up, and soon it wasn't about doing the right thing anymore. it was about controlling monsterkind entirely."

Looking back up at the human, Frisk could see newfound energy burning within him. "they got what was comin' to them, like everyone that plays god. ironically, it was their own invention that did them in. or, i guess it'd be more accurate to say it was the invention that killed them," he continued, smile returning in full force. "technically _i_ was the one that - heh - gave them the 'push' they needed to meet that fate." he laughed at his little attempt at a joke. Frisk breathed in sharply, fearing for their friend's sanity (were they really considered friends anymore?), though he quickly recomposed himself. "see what i'm gettin' at, bucko? they had all that power, and all it took was one little push to overthrow them. that's how things work in this world: whoever has the most power at the time gets to rule for a while, until someone else gets even more and dominates them, or they get too strong to contain themselves and collapse altogether. Nobody's above that law, not even the crazy little brat that ended the world. It's only a matter of time until they're pushed back under, and someone else rises to take their place."

Was he really insinuating that Chara could be defeated? Look at what they did in less than a minute after gaining control- in fact, there _was_ nothing left to see at all! "as much as i'd _love_ to kick that spoiled shit in their scrawny, entitled ass, i'm really not in the position to be doing any fighting. or much of anything, really," he added, motioning to the wound on his stomach for emphasis. "but you... you've still got your soul, right? you're still alive, more or less. the only thing left in this wasteland. our last hope at one more chance to end this nightmare for good. unless you're comfortable with spending all eternity floating aimlessly in the void with nothing but past regrets to look back on?"

"N-no!" Frisk cried, though barely able to manage more than a whisper. "I... I know that's what I really deserve, but... I want the world back. _I want the world back, Sans!_ " they croaked, desperation clawing at their throat as they came closer and closer to that fraying thread. "Even if I never see it again... I at least want to give you all your lives back," they trailed off then, voice becoming a tiny squeak as they pleaded for a way out. A way to make things right. That shimmering, silver string, so frail and beautiful, finally came within their sight. Tiny, chubby hands reached out to grasp it. _Our last hope..._

"good. you may be a freak, but at least you realize your mistakes," Sans spoke, moving closer to the quivering child. "and hopefully, you'll realize that this really is our **_last_** chance. mess it up, and that's it. i won't be able to do this for you a second time," he warned, leaning down to catch their line of sight. "but try and keep a level head, alright? you gotta stay on alert if you wanna find any means of gaining the upper hand on them. got it?" he asked quietly, tone surprisingly soft despite his anger moments earlier. Frisk honestly had no idea what was happening; what had Sans managed to do that would give them the opportunity to face Chara?

In an instant, the darkness became light. Beautiful, sparkling light. Sans took a step back, but not before offering a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "don't worry, i'll still try and help ya, but we can't be too obvious about it, alright? can't have them knowing about us before we've got our trump card ready," the skeleton chimed, bringing a single bony finger to his mouth and giving a playful wink. "but i'm sure that won't be too hard for you, since you barely talk much anyways. if you do... just try not to scream it all out in a fit of rage and i think we'll be fine."

Before Frisk could ask any further questions, the light intensified greatly, enveloping Sans completely. They shut their eyes tight, using their arms to shield themselves from the blinding rays. It felt like the entire universe was spinning rapidly, turning and rushing around them violently. All sounds ceased, and even their scream of terror was lost to space. It was similar to the moment when the world ended at Chara's hand, except this time around... something was stirring. Something was rising up out of the torrent of light, faster and faster. This time, it felt more like...

...like a world was beginning.

With a sudden jolt and a gasp for air,

Frisk woke up in bed.

* * *

 **End Note:**

 **(Now what have you done this time, Sans? You've just _gotta_ be so very cryptic about your actions, don't you?**

 **I may or may not make this multiple chapters, depending on how well-accepted this little thing is.**

 **Partially inspired by the fan-made comic "Aftertale" by tumblr user loverofpiggies. Seriously, go check it out if you haven't already!)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**

 **(I'm so glad that so many people have enjoyed the first chapter of this story! It was just something that I thought up one day - wondering how Sans would feel knowing that the ending that Frisk fought so hard to get was destroyed along with everything else in the world. Just a bitter and sarcastic ghost making Frisk feel guilty for what they've done.**

 **More story updates are coming soon, hopefully for Interstellar, Sensory Overload, and Ghost Adventures. We'll see how exhausted I end up throughout the week now that school's started back up.)**

* * *

 _Wh-what...? What happened to me? Where am I?_

Upon waking, Frisk found themselves lying in a dark, cozy room, tucked into a bed that felt slightly familiar to them. Their surroundings were calm and relatively quiet, save for the gentle hum of the heating system in the background. Adjusting their tired eyes to the darkness around them, Frisk could make out a few pieces of furniture beside their bed, and a single door across from them that likely led out into a hallway. The entire room was monotone, with varying shades of red and pink making up the color scheme.

It seemed that somehow, the lost child had found their way back into their bedroom in the ruins. Back before they left to begin their murderous rampage. Back when Toriel was still alive and caring for them. It was all like a dream come true, except... was any of this real at all? Had they finally lost it and were now left to wander their fragmented memories for eternity?

Feeling anxious, Frisk hastily scrambled out of bed and practically tripped over themself to get to the door. The hallway outside was as still as the bedroom, and they figured if Toriel really was here, that she would be sitting in her usual reading chair in the living room. Bracing themself for what may lie ahead, Frisk made their way carefully down the hall and past the front entryway, stalling just before they reached the dining room to settle their nervous thoughts before taking that final step into the open room before them. For a moment, they dared not to open their eyes, afraid that Toriel really wouldn't be there, that everything would just fade away and they'd be left floating in darkness once more. But the anticipation was soon too much to bear, and the small child slowly cracked their eyes open to the world around them...

"Hey kiddo, you're up early. Have a bad dream again?"

 _...Wait, what?_

Sitting casually at the dining table, Sans addressed the confused human standing in the hall, resting his head in his hand as he watched them with a single eye. "Toriel's still asleep, but you can chill with me for a bit if you'd like," he continued, smiling warmly at Frisk and motioning to the chair across from him at the table.

Still dazed and disoriented, Frisk managed to shuffle their way over to the offered seat, wiggling themself up into the tall chair. The skeleton chuckled at this, shaking his head lightly. "Who knew boss monsters were all so big, huh? I'll have to see about getting us shorties some normal-sized furniture," he said jokingly, sitting up straight when Frisk managed to sit themself down properly. "So what's up, buddy? Wanna chat 'n chow?"

Frisk remained silent, staring awkwardly down at their lap as they tried to make sense of what was happening. How was Sans even here right now? This wasn't how things were supposed to be, right? Maybe this _was_ just an illusion after all. The extended silence seemed to concern Sans, as he eventually leaned forward and spoke up again. "Are you feelin okay? I can go get Tori if you need her," he asked softly, worry clearly evident in his voice.

Snapping back to the present, Frisk mustered up the strength to smile at their friend, raising a hand dismissively. "N-no, I'm okay. Just... uhm, could I please have a glass of water?" they responded meekly, still avoiding direct eye contact. Sans' smile returned to his face, and he nodded before hopping down from his chair and making his way to the kitchen without another word, leaving Frisk alone with their thoughts for a moment. Letting their smile fall, they resumed their previous train of thought; just where did they end up this time? From what they could recall, Sans had appeared before them and offered "one last chance" - but a chance at what, exactly? If things weren't simply reset once more, then where were they now? They couldn't think of any point where Sans actually entered the ruins himself, not to mention the fact they were still here in the first place. They never spent more than a few hours in Toriel's care at the most, but it almost seemed as if this time around, they were actually _living_ here. Nothing added up, and the more they tried to piece things together, the more abnormalities seemed to pop up. _Was this a new timeline entirely...?_ Sans had said something about getting this "last chance" himself, but how exactly did he do it?

As they were lost in thought, Sans came back into the room, holding a clear glass of water. He walked over to Frisk's side of the table, gently placing the glass down in front of them before taking his place back in his seat. They nodded thanks to him before taking the cold cup into their tiny hands, staring at their reflection for a few seconds before taking a sip. The water was actually pretty refreshing, and they downed half the glass before finally setting it back down on the table. They hadn't realized it before, but it really had been a long time since they had anything to drink. Sans looked pleased, leaning back in his seat and crossing his arms. "You look like you're feelin' a bit better now," he commented, earning a nod from the small child. "That's good. Sorry you've been havin so many nightmares lately, buddy. Lucky Tori and I are still here for ya," he said quietly, and Frisk noticed an odd expression grace his features before quickly reverting back to his default grin.

The room became quiet once more, Frisk occasionally taking another gulp of their water as they both thought of something to talk about. Finally, the young human sighed loudly and looked up into the skeleton's eyes. They just had to ask him. "Sans, are you... do you, uh...," they stuttered, struggling to think of an appropriate way to word the question. It was entirely possible that Sans didn't remember anything at all, and the last thing they wanted was to alert him of time shenanigans by bringing it up. "How is everything?" they decided to ask, hoping he would pick up on what they meant if he truly did remember. Unfortunately, Sans only shrugged.

"Well, things've been alright, I guess. Despite everything, Undyne's proven to be a pretty capable Queen," he began, failing to notice the utter shock on Frisk's face as he talked. "The people really support her, and they've been doing all they can to help her cause, for better or worse. At least everyone's starting to regain a bit of hope - though Alphys still hasn't made any real progress on the disappearances. Oh, that reminds me, she's gonna come visit us this weekend; she seemed pretty excited to see you again-"

"What did you just say...?" Frisk muttered, still unable to believe what they just heard. Undyne... is the Queen? _In no timeline did something like this happen... what is going on here?_

"Hmm? Oh, I said Alphys was coming over this-"

"Nonono, not that. What you said first... about Undyne," their voice was growing steadily louder, and Sans noticed the panicked look on their face. He leaned in once more, raising a brow.

"Uhh, just that Undyne is doing well as Queen, all things considered. Is something wrong?"

"Of _course_ something is wrong! Why is Undyne the Queen? How did that even happen!?" Frisk cried out, sweat beginning to drip down their forehead. _This isn't possible... this just can't be possible!_

Now even Sans looked a bit scared, reaching out a hand to try and comfort his friend. "H-hey now, just take it easy! Deep breaths, okay?" he motioned with his other hand, moving it up and down in time with his breathing, trying to demonstrate for Frisk. "That dream must've been pretty nasty, but you're awake now. Just give yourself time to catch up, you'll be back in the swing of things in no time," his voice was gentle and soothing, and Frisk found that they had begun to settle down with their friend's guidance. Gradually, their breathing slowed to an even rhythm, sweat cooling their flushed skin. _Right, freaking out isn't going to solve anything..._

It appeared that this all _was_ really unfamiliar territory. Sans, too, was different this time around - not only did he fail to remember anything about the previous timeline, but his behavior seemed off somehow; he was more talkative, more _personal_ than before. It wasn't like him to be so tender in times of stress. Usually, the most he'd offer was a bit of friendly advice, with a few awful jokes and rhetorical questions thrown in. What had happened to change him so much?

"S-Sans...," Frisk began, their voice barely above a whisper. Said monster's head perked up a bit, and he leaned in to better hear the child speak. "Could y-you- could you remind me? About what's happened? S-so I can make sense of it all again," they asked, so soft that they had to repeat themselves again before Sans could understand. He removed his boney hand from their shoulder, sitting back in his chair as he recalled the events leading up to their present.

"Well, let's see," he muttered a few inaudible words to himself, filtering through his memories for the more important moments. "You fell on down into the Underground a few months ago. At first, we were all kinda apprehensive about approaching you, but eventually you made yourself quite a few friends on your way to the castle," he winked at Frisk, and they couldn't help but smile back just the same. "Even Undyne warmed up to ya pretty fast. You managed to get all the way up to Asgore, and even though you beat him, you still spared him in the end. He and Tori adopted you as their own, and things were goin pretty well for a while. But," he trailed off then, a darkness washing itself over his face. The atmosphere in the room shifted, a feeling of tension hanging in the air around the two. "Something... unexpected happened. Just like that, a handful of monsters just up and vanished in thin air. Asgore, Mettaton, and... and Papyrus were among the disappearances," his voice wavered, hands instinctively making their way to his chest, gripping the fabric of his jacket absentmindedly. It took a few seconds before he could recompose himself. "Naturally, everyone suspected you. After all, monsters were taught all our lives just how dangerous and cruel humans were supposed to be. They all thought you tricked everyone, made your way into the royal family just so you could destroy us from the inside out. Of course, Toriel wasn't gonna have any of that. She insisted you were innocent, that you couldn't possibly do something so awful. But the people were so angry, so desperate, that they revolted against her. Undyne was the head of this revolution; she just couldn't take the loss of her closest friends, and she blamed it on the Queen for responding so passively. She kicked Toriel out of the castle and banished her to the ruins, taking you with her."

He paused once more, allowing Frisk to process everything they'd been told. What about Flowey...? Didn't he appear at the end of that fight and finish Asgore off? Immediately after that they loaded the save only to fight his Omega form. Another load, and they found the True Lab and fought Asriel. How had this time around been any different? Did Flowey disappear as well? If it wasn't Frisk that did it, then who could have? So many questions were swimming through the human child's head, only to dissipate when Sans picked up the conversation. "Things were pretty hectic, and me being the lazybones I am, I decided to take a little vacation here in the ruins myself. Couldn't just leave the old lady to take care of you all by herself now could I? And since Alphys was an old friend of mine, she agreed to help me out in researching these disappearances in secret. I think that's everything," he finally finished, sighing deeply as relaxed back in the large wooden dining chair. "Did ya get all that, kiddo?"

Frisk nodded, trying to come to terms with this new reality they found themselves in. Everything was so new and awkward, they really had no idea how to approach it. Monsters leave their dust behind when they die, right? So if those that went missing were really dead, their dusted bodies would be left behind as proof. The fact that they simply vanished entirely left a sour taste in the back of the child's throat. Was all their time hopping actually having an adverse effect on others, too? "Thanks, Sans. I've got it all now. I just have one more question for you," they stated, and Sans patiently waited to answer. "Do you think I did it? Do you think I'm the reason they all disappeared?"

The lights flickered.

Frisk flinched in response, afraid that they had angered him by asking such a thing. However, the skeleton didn't seem too phased by it. In fact, as they stared at him longer, they realized that he wasn't moving at all. _Nothing_ around them was moving anymore. Had they said something wrong? Did they mess up?

"Geez kid, you sure worry a lot for a murderous psychopath," a sudden voice behind them made the child jump, falling down from the chair they sat in and landing hard on the floor with a dull thud. The intruder merely laughed, not bothering to help the human up. "Relax, I'm not gonna hurt you. As much as I'd love to, I kinda need you to work with me right now."

Rubbing their bruised head, Frisk looked up at the figure who now stood before them. As they had thought, it was Sans standing there; the Sans they had spoken to in the void, with his bitter smirk and bloody, wrinkled jacket. That familiar red scarf tied haphazardly around his non-existent neck. "What, did you forget about me already? I told ya we'd talk sometime, and I figured I'd come in and do some explaining before you go and screw everything up so soon."

"I told you I got you another chance. Well, this is it. The only timeline left untouched. The only ending you failed to see before you destroyed everything. All I had to do was track it down and stuff you into it at some point, and bingo! We've got ourselves a DIY timeline continuation!" Sans exclaimed, throwing up his arms in mock excitement. "Pretty neat, right? With this, we have some kinda substance to work with. Since the 'game' was supposed to have already ended, everything that happens from here on out is pretty much just a simulation - accurate, but not entirely exact. Still, it should be plenty enough for our end goal," he approached Frisk casually, kneeling down on one knee to reach their eye level. "Do you remember what you have to do? Somewhere in this timeline, there's bound to be something, _anything_ we can use to change things. Some kinda material that'll give us insight on that demon kid, some way we can overpower them. Your presence here has changed a few things; you've noticed, haven't you? Something that shouldn't be possible?"

 _Flowey. Undyne. The disappearances..._

"Get to the bottom of those anomalies, and you'll find what we're looking for. Make the pieces fit together, so the big picture becomes clear. Got it?"

So much was happening all at once; it felt like their head was about ready to burst with so many changes in such a short time. Still, there was one thing they wanted to know...

"Sans, how did you do this?" they asked, surprised that their voice didn't crack.

The bloodied skeleton could only laugh. "Don't worry about that. What's important is what you do from here on. Just try your best to blend in with the setting, and you'll be fine. For the most part," he added, shrugging as he stood back up and turned to walk away from Frisk. "Just try not to do anything stupid."

Before they could respond, Sans had blipped out of existence just as quickly as he'd come, and soon the world began churning and chugging along once more, leaving Frisk left dazed on the floor as everything settled in their mind. They hadn't even noticed they were being talked to until a cold finger poked at their back. The other Sans was moving again, giggling as he grinned down at the human. "You sure you're okay there, buddy? Maybe you should try and get back to sleep," he offered, extending a hand out to help them up off the floor. They accepted graciously, eager to cuddle up under the covers and give themselves some time to think.

"As for your question," he spoke up, reminding them of their interrupted conversation. "No, I don't think you did it. Something's definitely fishy around here, but it's got nothing to do with you. So don't you dare listen to anyone tellin you otherwise, okay?" his eyes looked tired, but he smiled nonetheless. It was nice, having Sans as a friend instead of a dangerous enemy.

"Thank you," was all the child could say before they had been escorted to their bedroom, closing the large door behind them with a soft _click_.

 _Maybe this won't be as hard as I thought._

* * *

 **End Note:**

 **(I just love a sarcastic Sans. Also got a pretty neat idea for this lil fic here~**

 **I really didn't expect people to like that chapter so much, but I'm really glad that you do! Undertale is honestly one of the greatest games I've ever played, and I just couldn't resist making some sort of story for it. Any and all reviews are greatly appreciated, as they show me you really liked reading the silly thing I wrote~)**

 **(PS - for those who don't know, school presently sucks motivation out of me like a leech. I do actually have a lot of free time, I just spend that free time doing little to nothing productive because by the end of the day, I'm so tired I don't really feel like doing much else. It's not that I don't want to write, it's just that I have a hard time motivating myself to actually go and do it. I really wish I could just imagine the story and it would just magically appear on the internet exactly how I wanted it so I don't have to go through converting all these jumbled thoughts and ideas into a legible plotline. Or is that just a poor excuse for being lazy...? Hell if I know.)**


End file.
